Seattle takes 3-game losing streak into matchup with Minnesota
Minnesota Twins (30-15, first in the AL Central) vs. Seattle Mariners (22-26, fifth in the AL West)
Seattle; Sunday, 4 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Twins: Kyle Gibson (4-1, 4.26 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 45 strikeouts) Mariners: Yusei Kikuchi (4-1, 3.64 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 43 strikeouts)
LINE: Twins favored by 1 1/2 runs; over/under is 8 1/2 runs
BOTTOM LINE: Seattle enters the matchup as losers of their last three games.
The Mariners are 9-14 on their home turf. Seattle has slugged .457, good for third in the American League. Daniel Vogelbach leads the team with a .603 slugging percentage, including 19 extra-base hits and 12 home runs.
The Twins are 15-7 on the road. Minnesota has slugged .511, the highest in the American League. Jorge Polanco leads the club with a .600 slugging percentage, including 25 extra-base hits and eight home runs. The Twins won the last meeting 18-4. Tyler Duffey earned his first victory and Jonathan Schoop went 3-for-5 with two home runs and five RBIs for Minnesota. Wade LeBlanc took his first loss for Seattle.
TOP PERFORMERS: Domingo Santana leads the Mariners with 37 RBIs and is batting .269. Vogelbach is 5-for-30 with a double, three home runs and nine RBIs over the last 10 games for Seattle.
Polanco leads the Twins with 25 extra base hits and is slugging .600. C.J. Cron is 15-for-41 with two doubles, five home runs and 10 RBIs over the last 10 games for Minnesota.
LAST 10 GAMES: Mariners: 3-7, .213 batting average, 7.66 ERA, outscored by 42 runs
Twins: 7-3, .300 batting average, 3.90 ERA, outscored opponents by 33 runs
Mariners Injuries: Sam Tuivailala: 10-day IL (achilles), Hunter Strickland: 60-day IL (lat), Felix Hernandez: 10-day IL (shoulder), Gerson Bautista: 10-day IL (pectoral), Kyle Seager: 60-day IL (hand), Dylan Moore: 10-day IL (wrist).
Twins Injuries: Adalberto Mejia: 10-day IL (calf), Nelson Cruz: 10-day IL (wrist), Mitch Garver: 10-day IL (ankle).
